Chapter 50

5 years ago.

To break the Chinese national team’s Double Sniper Strategy, we had prepared the “Slope Shield” Operation.

Slope Shield literally meant a sloped, inclined shield.

It was an operation to defend against an enemy’s attack with a shield deliberately angled obliquely.

This idea was borrowed from sloped armor, which is also applied to tank protection. Defending with a slope rather than taking an attack at a right angle allowed for a sturdier defense with the same amount of Mana.

The effect was particularly outstanding the more the angle was tilted, and in this case, it was possible to create a difference in defense several times over.

“It’s just tilting the Shield, so why does the Defense Power go up?”

It was past 11 PM.

Lee Seulgi, the Sniper who had come down to practice with me, asked with a yawn.

“Look. A Shield has thickness, right?”

“Yes.”

“I just created a Shield that’s 10cm thick. If you hit it head-on, the bullet has to penetrate at least 10cm to get through, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then how does it change when it’s tilted?”

As I tilted the Shield greatly, Lee Seulgi, who had been staring at it blankly, answered.

“Isn’t it still 10cm?”

This kid must be bad at math…

I beckoned her closer with a hand gesture and showed her the side cross-section of the Shield.

“When the Shield is slanted, the length the bullet needs to penetrate gets longer, right? Because it’s a diagonal line, not a right angle.”

“Oh? You’re right. It looks like it has to go through almost twice as much.”

“This is what it means to get more Defense Power with the same amount of Mana.”

“Damn. Isn’t this a cheat?”

Lee Seulgi’s eyes widened as if she had made the discovery of the century, and she began to speak passionately.

She was saying that from now on, just by adding a tilt to her Shield, she could secure several times more Defense Power than others.

I chuckled, feeling like I was looking at a young niece.

“Not necessarily.”

“Why?”

“Because I gave it a tilt, what happened to the Shield when viewed from the front? The top is exposed, and the bottom is exposed. The defensive area has gotten smaller, right?”

“Yes.”

“It’s hard to use against an enemy that pours out a shower of attacks, like with a Rifle, because there are too many openings.”

“Ah… so that’s why you only try it when the enemy is mainly Snipers.”

“That’s about right.”

Even just this was a huge advantage for the defending side.

But the benefits of the Slope Shield didn’t end there.

By giving the Shield a slope, you could also increase the probability of a bullet Ricochet.

Ricochet means the bullet fails to penetrate and bounces off, and the greater the angle of the Shield’s tilt, the higher that probability rose.

In other words, if you could just use the Shield at the right Timing, it could be incredibly effective against a Sniper.

“Alright, now go over there and shoot.”

“Okay.”

Lee Seulgi moved to a corner of the Battlefield, placed her Sniper Rifle on the ground, and got into position.

The target was me.

And behind me stood Kim Seunga.

The Slope Operation was for a two-person team.

The number 1 Attacker, in charge of the main attack, stood in front, and the number 2 Attacker, in a supporting role, stood behind. The sloped Shield was designed for both players to deploy simultaneously in response to the enemy’s attack.

This was because if an Attacker used a Shield alone, they couldn’t handle the Damage a Sniper dished out, no matter how much they angled the Shield.

“Can you really do this?”

Kim Seunga said, watching me prepare for the Attack.

She had come down to practice because I had vehemently insisted I could do it, but it seemed she thought it was impossible no matter how she looked at it.

“What’s so hard about this? We use our Shields together when the attack comes, close the distance like that, and then just neatly take the enemy Sniper’s head off. That’s it!”

“Right. We’ll see when we try.”

“Seulgi, we’ll start on your signal.”

“Roger.”

“Go!”

As the signal was given, Lee Seulgi’s eyes widened, and she pulled the Trigger.

Granting Bullet Enhancement and Penetration.

A bullet imbued with two Skills broke the sound barrier and flew toward us, along with the flash from the muzzle brake.

At that moment, I was using Acceleration to its absolute limit, so I could see the bullet with my own eyes and activated my Shield at the perfect Timing to defend against the attack.

Just as the Shield was about to shatter and a hole was about to be punched through my body, Kim Seunga’s Shield was layered on top, making the defense even more solid.

The enhanced bullet collided with the Shield, and a spark erupted before my eyes.

With a startled expression, Lee Seulgi refocused and fired a second shot.

It was understandable that she was surprised, since an Attacker had blocked a Sniper’s full-powered attack with a Shield.

However, Lee Seulgi’s attack failed this time as well.

And in the time it took to block two shots with our Shields, we had already reached right in front of her.

At that incredible speed, Lee Seulgi let out a startled “Heek-!”

With a click, I placed the Muzzle of my gun against her forehead, and Lee Seulgi quickly raised both hands to declare her surrender.

“I lost!”

“See? I told you I could do it.”

“Hey. This isn’t it.”

Kim Seunga said.

She asked how Lee Seulgi could even be compared to Svetlana.

Lee Seulgi, who heard this right in front of her, looked crestfallen, but Kim Seunga paid her no mind and continued the conversation.

“Her shots are too predictable. They kept coming right for the center of the torso, didn’t they? Someone on Svetlana’s level can shoot wherever she wants—our shoulders, legs, knees, head.”

Her point was that the situation would not be easy, as we would have to adjust the angle and direction of our Shields more meticulously.

“But we also just ran in a straight line. If we move in a zigzag, it’ll be harder for them to hit us too, so I think the conditions were similar.”

“It’s not just that. Lee Seulgi, how many Skills did you just use?”

“Two.”

“A top-tier Sniper can cast three, or even up to four Skills in a split second. You have no idea how hard that is to block, Dami.”

Why wouldn’t I know?

The memory of lining up the national team’s Snipers and being their target practice 5 years ago was still vivid.

Kim Seunga passionately argued that practicing with Lee Seulgi was useless, but I calmed her down, suggesting we look at the game more coolly.

“How was the Attack speed just now? It wasn’t bad, right?”

The key to increasing Attack speed lay in the mastery of the Acceleration Skill.

And the Attack speed I had just attempted against Lee Seulgi was definitely worthy of being called World Class.

“I’ll give you the speed. But at this speed, do you think you can even use the Shield properly tomorrow?”

“I told you I can. Why is the person who was so impressed with me that she immediately made an Offer acting like this~?”

“Hmph. That’s different from this, but…”

“Actually, I’m worried about something else.”

“What is it?”

“Whether you’ll be able to keep up with my Attack speed tomorrow, Unni.”

“Ha.”

At those words, Kim Seunga laughed as if in disbelief.

“You little brat, getting cocky. It’s true you’re good, but you’ve still got a long way to go before you can surpass me, you know?”

“We’ll see when we try.”

“It’s on!”

I nodded, saying let’s do it.

Comparing our speeds was simple.

We just had to use Acceleration from the same starting line and see who could run to the target point faster.

The moment Lee Seulgi’s signal was given, our two bodies vanished from the ground.

A speed that could almost be called a gale.

As I cut through the wind and glanced at Kim Seunga running beside me, Seo Dami exclaimed in admiration.

<Unni is fast…!>

The Attack speed of the national team member called the Ace of South Korea was certainly something to behold.

However, I too had been called the best in the country when it came to Acceleration.

As I raised my Concentration, my body slowly began to pull ahead.

Kim Seunga, watching this, widened her eyes and then squeezed out every last bit of her strength to increase her speed.

And so, we were running side-by-side again.

If we went even a little faster from here, our Balance would collapse, and we would surely fall or stumble, so this speed could be called Kim Seunga’s Attack limit.

‘She has just a tiny bit of energy left.’

I briefly checked my body’s condition.

I felt I could shift up a gear, albeit minutely.

Then it would be possible to overtake Kim Seunga again.

But I didn’t actually go through with it.

I didn’t want to needlessly inflict a sense of defeat on a teammate I had to play with during the Event Match.

Because if she lost to me, she’d probably throw a fit, saying she was a has-been now, or that it was time to retire.

And so, the two of us crossed the finish line at almost the same time.

Kim Seunga must have used a lot of energy, as she immediately let out a “Puha!” and gasped for breath.

“See! Why wouldn’t I be able to keep up with you! I’m still the national team’s Ace~.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“What’s with that reaction?”

“What about it?”

“It sounds like you’re answering reluctantly!”

“I’m not. Unni, you’re the best.”

“Hey! Acknowledge it, quickly!”

“My Unni is the best!”

“Seo Dami-!”

With a fuming Kim Seunga in tow, we continued to train until late at night.

Although it was a practice match, it was a game that would draw the attention of many.

The preparations for the team’s ascent were slowly ripening.

The very first practice match among all the teams gathered in Jeju Island for the Event Match.

Since Spectators were not allowed, there weren’t many people watching.

The people occupying the scattered seats were the filming crews from various countries who had come to record footage.

Korea, China, Japan, Russia.

Some countries had small crews of two, while others had formed teams of more than ten.

The strange thing was that among those gathered, not a single person thought Korea would win.

If Kim Seungha PD had watched the nighttime practice, his thoughts might have changed, but he was tired from editing and figured he could just request the recording later and splice it in.

‘I hope we get some usable footage.’

He didn’t dare hope for a win.

Just a few impressive shots.

With that much, he felt he could create a comforting video, adding the modifier “fought well but lost.”

As he was thinking that, the players entered the Arena.

The first to enter was the Russian team.

Svetlana Smirnova.

A hero of Russia and a legendary player who once ranked first among all female Snipers worldwide.

As the Russian team entered with her in the lead, the Russian filming crew applauded lightly.

“Is the player behind Svetlana, Yekaterina? She’s pretty.”

Russia’s Sniper Prospect, being raised as the next national treasure.

With white hair and blue eyes, her exotic beauty, true to her nickname “Snow Leopard,” made Kim Seungha PD exclaim in admiration, and his Hubae muttered.

“Though I don’t think she’s as pretty as Seo Dami.”

“……?”

The Russian team entered, and following them, the Korean team made their entrance.

Watching the Korean team enter with their Leader at the front, Kim Seungha PD focused on Seo Dami.

‘Looks aside, there’s no doubt that Seo Dami is the key to this game.’

The players selected as the Ace and Leader of each country were all undoubtedly World Class players.

However, Kim Seunga was considered a little lacking in skill to be called World Class, so if you compared only the Leaders’ skills, Korea was overwhelmingly in last place.

So where could they make up for this gap?

The only answer was Seo Dami.

A prodigy of Talent who had earned the Legendary title in the winter of her 18th year by confidently securing Offers from Cheonhwa and Artemis.

Even if you scoured the entire world, it was extremely rare for a female User to achieve Legendary Tier at the age of 18.

A talent that would inevitably be flooded with Offers if she hadn’t made her pro debut.

With things as they were, Korea had no choice but to pin all its hopes for creating a variable on Seo Dami.

Because even though they were outmatched in the 1st and 3rd player weight classes, the 2nd division, which included Seo Dami, could at least overwhelm the other teams.

The rule was a single-Set, one-match showdown, as announced beforehand.

A single mistake could decide the Win-Loss, but this structure was advantageous for Korea.

In longer games like a best-of-three or best-of-five, the team with the superior average skill would have a higher probability of winning, but in a single-match showdown, you never knew what might happen.

If a play that caught the opponent off guard worked, even a weaker team could show an impressive performance at least once.

‘Battlefield luck is also important.’

Everyone knew that Russia was bringing their Double Sniper Strategy.

In that case, a Battlefield with many curves and limited open Vision would be advantageous.

But despite these hopes, the Battlefield was decided as Enterprise.

The moment he saw the name Enterprise, the PD slapped his forehead.

This Battlefield, where you had to advance through the massive straight corridors inside a Space Battleship to seize the Bridge, was one of the best for Snipers to run wild.

What’s more, the Russian team had two Snipers.

If they placed one player in each of the left and right corridors, Korea would never be able to break through the passages, not even in their wildest dreams.

‘We’ve lost this one.’

As he was thinking that, in the Waiting Room, the players were having their final conversation before the match.

“Are you really going to do it?”

“I told you, we are.”

“Won’t it be a waste?”

What does she mean, a waste?

Do they have some kind of strategy prepared?

The PD focused on the conversation between Kim Seunga and Seo Dami.

“The execution seems pretty good, so if we use it in the main tournament…”

“Didn’t you say just yesterday that it would be absolutely impossible in one day?”

“I can make a mistake! Anyway, are you really doing it?”

“Yes. What’s the point of saving it? Is the main tournament that important to you and me, Unni?”

“Of course it’s important, what do you mean?”

“If we’re talking about what’s important, wouldn’t next year’s Olympics be more important?”

Seo Dami said.

Unless they were going to keep it hidden until the Olympics, there was no meaning in when they decided to pull it out.

She said that their strategy would be effective throughout this Event Match, and the opponents would be helpless against it even if they knew it was coming.

“It feels better to win them all if we can, doesn’t it?”

With a grin, Seo Dami exclaimed, “Let’s do it.”

As I wondered what on earth they had prepared, the match began.